Process of making metallic catalyzers.



STATES PATENT OFFICE.

WILLIAM D. RICHARDSON, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

PROCESS OF MAKING METALLIC CATALYZERS.

No Drawing.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WILLIAM D. RICH- ARDSON, a citizen of the UnitedStates of America, and a resident of Chicago, county of Cook, and Stateof Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements inProcesses of Making Metallic Catalyzers, of which the following is aspecification.

The object of this invention is to facilitate the manufacture of, andproduce an improved metallic catalyzer particularly adapted for use inprocesses of hydrogenating oils and fats to harden or solidify them. Asis well known, fatty oils, oleic acid, etc., can be hardened andconverted into fatty bodies of higher melting point by treatment withgaseous hydrogen in the presence of certain .catalytically actingbodies; nickel be ing generally used. Under the influence of thecatalyst the hydrogen is taken up chemically by the oil, oleic acidbeing converted into stearic and olein into stearin. Nothing definitehowever is known as to the nature of the actions taking place; but it isknown that the character of the catalyst and the manner of itsmanufacture have much infiuence on the result.

In the present invention I have devised a new method of preparing highlyreactive catalysts with the production of a permanent material which canbe readily incorporated with oils and fats to be treated without dangerof injury by air.

This object is accomplished by the following described process:

I first put in a suitable container a quantity of a fluent organicsubstance, preferably in liquid or semi-liquid form, and of a kindadapted to mix with or having an affinity for oil or fat. Thissubstance, for example, may be oil or fat. Advantageously it is an oilor fat of such a nature as to mingle harmlessly with the oil later to behydrogenated. It should not be very volatileas the heat of the arc woulddissipate itand as this would cause inconvenience in handling thepreparation subsequently. Access to air is harmful to catalysts used forhydrogenating oils. Two metallic pole pieces are then sub: merged inthis substance and connected with a suitable device for supplyingr anelectric current through said pieces. hese pieces serve as electrodes,being suitably spaced apart to produce an electric arc across the gapbetween them, and to cause part of the metal of said electrodes todisintegrate and Specification of Letters Patent.

become suspended in the. said organic substance. The electrodes suitablefor this purpose may be nickel, copper, platinum, palladium, iron, ortheir alloys, or other metals or alloys. These electrodes may beconveniently used in the form of rods, and the electric current may besupplied by a hand feed or by an automatic arc lamp mechanism in whichthe rods are clamped. They may be entirely or Eartly submerged in theorganic substance efore mentioned, with their submerged ends in suitableproximity to each other to form the electric arc. The electric currentis operated preferably at a voltage of from 40 to 150, and is preferablya direct current.

The disintegration of the metals under the influence of the current isindicated to the eye by the blackening of the liquid caused by thediffusing or spreading of the metallic particles through it in formingthe colloidal solution or suspension.

During the operation of the arc, gases and heat are generated and inorder to minimize the effect of these I agitate the liquid and cool itby any suitable means.

The are is allowed to continue until the organic substance forming thevehicle for the disintegrated metal contains the desired amount of saiddisintegrated metal as, for example, from 1 to 20 per cent. of itsweight. This proportion may be widely varied, depending upon thestrength of the catalyzer desired. In hydrogenating an oil, other thingsbeing equal, the actlon goes on the quicker the greater the amount ofcatal ic Patented Feb. 26, 1918 Application filed November 11, 1912.Serial N 0. 730,745.

metal present. By the present metho a catalyst can be preparedcontaining any desired amount of active metal in a given amount of acarrier, thus rendering easy the addition of adjusted amounts ofcatalyzer to oil to be hydrogenated. Where an oil or fat is used as theorganic body or vehicle for the metal, the preparation thus produced maybe directly added to the oil to be hydrogenated.

Nickel electrically disintegrated or colloidalized beneath oil or fat'ves an active permanent preparation whic can be conveniently handled,stored and kept and which can be easily added to and uniformly diffusedthrough oil tobe hydrogenated.

When an oil or fat is used as the vehicle the catalyzer is complete foruse as soon as the desired amount of metal has become disintegrated andmixed therein.

The catalyzer preparations produced by the process herein described, maybe used for hydrogenating oils or fats in any of well known processes,as by mixing them with such oil and treating the oil with hydrogen orgases containing hydrogen, under heat and pressure.

What I claim as my invention and desire to secure by Letters Patentis 1. The process of forming a catalyzer adapted for use in thehardening of fatty oils which consists in producing an electric arebetween two metallic electrodes submerged in fluent fatty mass andthereby disintegrating part of the metal and causing it to enter the fatin finely divided form.

2. The process of forming a catalyzer adapted for use in the hardeningof fatty oils which consists in producing an electric are between twometallic electrodes submerged in a liquid or semi-liquid organic body ofa fatty nature and thereby disin-,

tegrating part of the metal and causing it to enter said body in finelydivided or colloidal suspension and stirring the mass so as to diffusesaid disintegrated metal throughout said body.

3. The process of forming a catalyzer adapted for use in the hardeningof fatty oils which consists in producing an electric are between twometallic electrodes submerged in a liquid or semi-liquid organic body offatty nature, and permitting the electric current to thus act on themetal until from 1 to per cent. thereof has become disintegrated, andstirring the mass so as to diffuse said disintegrated metal throughoutsaid body.

4. The process of forming a catalyzer adapted for use in the hardeningof fatty oils which comprises producing an electric are between nickelelectrodes in a fluent fatty mass, such are being continued until suchmass contains a substantial proportion of disintegrated nickel.

5. As a new article of manufacture, a permanent catalyst consisting of asuspension of electrically disintegrated colloidal metal in a fluentfatty substance.

6. As a new article of manufacture, a permanent catalyst consisting of asuspension of electrically disintegrated colloidal nickel in a fluentfatty substance.

7. As a new article of manufacture, a permanent catalyst consisting of asuspension of electrically disintegrated metal in a fluent fattysubstance.

8. As a new article of manufacture, a permanent catalyst consisting of asuspension of electrically disintegrated nickel in a fluent fattysubstance.

Signed at Chicago this day of October WILLIAM D. RICHARDSON.

Witnesses I. O. BEATTY, ARTHUR CORBISHLEY.

